


Styrophone Melodies

by faintof



Category: Undertale (Video Game)
Genre: Animal Abuse, Bad Bro AU, Gaslighting, Gen, Implied/Referenced Domestic Violence, Major Character Injury, Manipulative Relationship, Maybe more??? - Freeform, Semi-Graphic Depiction of Grievous Injuries, Starvation, Suicidal Thoughts, Verbal Abuse, domestic abuse
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-04-13
Updated: 2019-04-09
Packaged: 2019-04-22 07:14:04
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 17
Words: 12,156
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14303568
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/faintof/pseuds/faintof
Summary: Sans was as delicate as Papyrus was boisterous.Everyone knew that.Bad Brother AU





	1. Prelude

**Author's Note:**

> So that bad bro au that got 3 shorts in January Without Snow...*cough*
> 
> (Wanna hear a [Styrophone](https://youtu.be/6IAmww8tvSM)? Headphone warning! 8D)

If one had asked any resident of Snowdin about the skeleton brothers, anyone would have assured them that the brothers were as close as close could be. Sans, the smaller older brother, was a bit clumsy, constantly injuring himself thanks to his low HP and low DEF, while Papyrus, the taller younger brother, was the pinnacle of health, training to be in the royal guard. The small community made many concessions for the older brother due to his fragile state, discounting the healing items he needed seemingly constantly, sneaking him the magic-rich sweets he was fond of but his brother would never approve of. He was a cherished member of the community and Snowdin took care of its own. The younger brother worried endlessly over the older, disapproving both of the fact that Sans's sentry station was the first a human would encounter and of the olders penchant for getting into mysterious mishaps on a regular basis.

The older would take constant naps at his sentry station (excusable because of his condition), only to be awoken by a fretting brother and hauled around town slung over the tallers’ shoulder. Papyrus would smile and wave cheerfully at the other residents, grip firm on his small brother, as Sans snoozed away, restoring what little energy he had. The duo were a familiar source of warmth and entertainment, Sans’s puns and Papyrus’s over-exaggerated anger always cause for a laugh or two.

If the taller brother seemed a bit rough in his handling of the smaller, well, he knew exactly how much he could take. The older brother must have found it refreshing to not always be treated as though he were made of glass. And if the smaller ever seemed hesitant around his brother, well, Papyrus was quite loud and surprisingly forceful. Most residents couldn’t help but be awed and intimidated by such a cool skeleton, Sans was obviously no exception.

That day, Sans had stumbled into Grillby’s during one of his government mandated breaks, waving off concerns over a new, small crack at the edge of his permanent grin. Laughing it off with a pun about getting out of the wrong side of the bed, he ordered his bottle of ketchup, as usual. In the ten minutes it took him to drain the bottle, the crack slowly healed until no mark remained and the other patrons could finally relax. With a final quip about being back for brunch, Sans was gone again. His tab was infamous, but everyone knew Grillby wasn’t expecting him to ever repay him.

Snowdin took care of its own.


	2. 1

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> He did something ( ~~right~~ ) wrong.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Spoilers/warnings in the tags

Sans hesitantly opened the front door, the loud squeal making him flinch. It seemed he had beaten his brother home. He sighed in relief before stepping inside, locking the door securely behind him before slipping off his ratty tennis shoes and replacing them with his even rattier slippers. Quickly, he carried his dirty shoes up to his room, tossing them into the corner before shedding his jacket as well. He crept back downstairs, hopefully he could get the kitchen cleaned up before Papyrus got home. He’d tried to clean it this morning, but he had done it all wrong. Maybe if he could get it right, Papyrus would share his dinner with him.

His stomach growled as though on command, the ketchup earlier had given him a bit of a boost, but it wasn’t nearly enough to sate his hunger. It had been at least three days since he’d eaten anything solid and, though he knew he could go longer, he really didn’t want to get on his brother’s bad side again. His brother would know if he went to get food behind his back. He always found out somehow. He pushed back the constant gnawing in his gut and set about his task, quickly falling into a rhythm.

It was a scant thirty minutes later that he heard the tumbler of the lock turn and he quickened his pace. He was so close to being done! Just five more minutes!

“SANS!” The call was loud and rattled in his skull to the pace of his scrubbing.

“in the kitchen.” He called back, hoping Papyrus had something he needed to do to give him the extra minute he needed. Stomping footsteps answered him and he let the scrub brush fall back onto the counter, straightening himself up.

“IS THAT ANY WAY TO REPLY TO YOUR BROTHER? LIKE I’M NOTHING BUT AN ANNOYANCE?” Sans dodged the bags in his arms as he stormed past.

“no! no! sorry, bro. you’re not an ann-“

“JUST BE QUIET FOR ONCE!” Sans’s mouth shut with a click and he hunched in on himself. Papyrus was already upset. He hadn’t even done anything yet. No, that was wrong, he had messed up the kitchen earlier. Of course he was still upset. He grabbed the scrub brush off the counter and squeezed it between his fingers, letting the bristles poke and scrape at his bones. He immediately stopped when Papyrus whirled around at the sound.

“OH, LOVELY. YOU TRIED TO CLEAN. WELL THE COUNTERS LOOK FINE, I SUPPOSE, BUT I ASKED YOU TO FINISH THE FLOOR.” His jaw clenched in disappointment. Sans was sure he had gotten upset about the counters. He had forgotten to tidy up the cabinets as well as the countertop. Hadn’t he? The floor had just been cleaned the other day, hadn’t it? Pressure started building behind his sockets.

“I SUPPOSE THAT WAS JUST TOO COMPLICATED FOR YOU TO REMEMBER.” He regarded Sans with a sigh. “OH, DON’T CRY. I SUPPOSE SOME PEOPLE ARE JUST TOO STUPID FOR SUCH SIMPLE WORK. I’LL JUST NEED TO FIND A WAY TO MAKE YOU REMEMBER.”

Sans tried to push down the crushing disappointment. How had he confused cleaning the counters for cleaning the floor? He really was stupid. What would he do without such a cool guy looking after him? His eye lights wavered as he quietly apologized at the floor.

“OF COURSE YOU’RE SORRY, BUT SORRY DOESN’T GET WORK DONE. FOR NOW, DO WHAT YOU WERE SUPPOSED TO IN THE FIRST PLACE. CLEAN THE FLOOR. AFTER THAT, WAIT FOR ME IN THE LIVING ROOM. DON’T WORRY, BROTHER, I CAN HELP YOU.”

Sans nodded, thankful his brother was still willing to help him.

But…

It didn’t sound like he was going to get dinner today either.


	3. 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Sienna always looked forward to the smaller skeletons visit.

It was a relatively slow day in Sienna’s opinion. A few monsters had filtered in and out making various purchases, but nothing out of the ordinary. She was, however, somewhat excited knowing that Sans would be coming by at some point for his weekly trip picking up groceries. Occasionally his younger brother would be with him or would come on his own another day, but the smaller skeleton always came on Thursdays. He was friendly, if not a bit soft spoken, but always ready to joke. Watching him get more at ease with her every week was something she had come to look forward to.

It was over an hour later that the bell above the door let out a merry jingle as it was opened. The bunny looked up quickly, customer service smile shifting to a more natural grin at the sight of the small skeleton. She called out a quick welcome as he grabbed a basket and proceeded to watch him meander through the shop, trying to mask her curiosity by pretending to play with her phone.

He looked exhausted, magic burned beneath his sockets and eye lights dim. A year or so back, Sans didn’t come like he was supposed to, so when Papyrus showed up instead, she had inquired as to his whereabouts. Papyrus had hesitantly revealed that his poor brother often suffered from horrible night terrors and Sienna had instantly felt her soul cry out for him. As Papyrus went to pay, she tossed in a few extra cinnamon bunnies, Sans’s favorite, she had explained. The next week, Sans was back as usual, but strangely enough had declined the free cinnamon bunny she had started to put in his bag.

He must have had a night terror then, she decided. The thought was confirmed when he turned around to head down a different aisle, a spider web of shallow cracks spanning the back of his skull. From what she had read, severe night terrors could cause the sufferer to call out or even thrash about in their sleep, making them prone to injuring themselves unintentionally. While there was nothing she could do for the poor thing, she could at least try to cheer him up.

“Hey, Sans! Did ya see the new pasta section? Looks like they’ve been working to mimic more kinds of surface foods. We got this stuff called angel hair pasta. Real thin noodles. Maybe your brother would like to experiment with it.” She spoke brightly as he wandered over to the indicated section.

“angel hair, huh? sounds im _pasta_ ble to me.” He winked at her, picking up the box. She snorted at the terrible joke. He was a bit shy as it was, she’d learned that building him up a bit made his jokes slightly less terrible.

“well, that’s disappointing.” His grin pulled down slightly and she immediately perked up. “s’not made with real angels. guess the only angel in here is you, Cece.” He grinned cheekily as she groaned. He could be such an awful flirt sometimes.

“I’m quite married, young man!” She scolded merrily. “Don’t make me call your brother.” She tacked on, furthering the disappointed teacher look by wagging a finger at him. His entire countenance shifted slightly.

“heh. yeah. wouldn’t want to  _brother_ him.” He quickly reshelved the box. “but nah, said ‘e found a new recipe to  _fry_. got any thicker noodles? he wanted to try makin’, uh, yaki soba? some fried noodle thing?” She smiles at him. He was so sweet, always thinking of his brother like that.

“Yeah, I think we got something like that.”

As he finally exited the shop, she saw him take a tiny nibble of the cinnamon bunny she had snuck him. Eating the whole thing should have enough magic to heal that crack right up, but he always claimed he wanted to savor the flavor.

She hoped he would be able to sleep better tonight.


	4. 3

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Today hadn't been so bad.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Is this the same as January Without Snow day 5? Yes. Is it different? Also, yes!  
> Expanded just a bit. :>

He didn’t mean it, Paps just got annoyed sometimes and had trouble controlling himself. He had always been a demanding child, it only stood to reason that that would continue into adulthood.

Sans cradled the lump of white fur in his arms, back resting against the ridiculously tall cabinet under the kitchen sink. The pain in his ribs was throbbing, but tolerable. The small pup in his arms, though…Red was seeping through his fur, matting it together in a sticky clump. Sans gently pet the dog regardless. Paps had been cooking dinner when the Annoying Dog had tried their usual shenanigans, but Paps had already been in a bad mood. The pup stood no chance in the face of the bone attack thrown his way. Sans tried to stop it, but that only worsened his mood. After tearing into his small brother, verbally and physically, he had stormed off. Dinner cancelled.

He stretched a tired arm up and flipped off the burner. If the house burnt down, there would be hell to pay. The dog whined, likely in pain. Sans shushed it as quietly as possible. It would do neither of them any good if Papyrus had to remind them to be quiet. He tried to muster up a spark of green magic but got only a flicker at his fingertips before it sputtered out, the ache in his ribs intensifying as though taunting him.

He shouldn’t have interfered, the dog could’ve gotten away. He had just caused more problems, as usual. His little brother had been tantamount in helping him reign in his unpredictable and, often, harmful urges, but even under his guiding hand, Sans found himself prone to acting irrationally.

The pup would have probably been okay. If he hadn’t tried to stop the bones, Paps wouldn’t have had to punish him and the dog could have run off to lick its wounds.

All in all.

Today hadn’t been so bad.


	5. 4

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> He broke the rules.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This installment is a doozy! New tags added, definitely mind them!! Or if you don't want to be spoiled, don't look at them but know that this chapter is a doozy! xD
> 
> Also, my search history finally looks like I'm a murderer! I feel like a real writer now. :>

It wasn’t common knowledge that a skeleton monsters bones could be dislocated and reattached at will, but the brothers had certainly known.

It had been another evening of Sans’s phalanges tightly gripping the sofa cushion, watching his brother eat his oatmeal while he himself was not yet allowed to touch the plate of spaghetti that had been made for him. The reason why didn’t matter much to Sans, he just wanted something solid for his magic to absorb. It was an arduous wait, but finally Papyrus finished and stood, walking briskly into the kitchen without sparing him a glance. His bones clacked loudly against the kitchen tile and Sans heard the microwave hum for a minute before dinging. Sans tempered his excitement, real,  _hot_ food? He must not have screwed up that day.

Shortly, his brother stomped back into the room, a grimace on his face as he thrust the plate towards his small brother. Sans couldn’t help it, he flinched, cowering behind his control arm. A single, small bone materialized before him before he could dispel the sudden buildup of magic. Papyrus looked down at him with disappointment in his eyes. Sans hastily dismissed the bone, hoping to lessen whatever punishment would come.

“sorry, b-bro. i didn’t mean to- you know i’d never- i thought, i mean i- i didn’-“ Papyrus cut off the babbled apologies.

“SANS, WHAT HAVE I SAID ABOUT USING MAGIC IN THE HOUSE? WE HAVE THESE RULES IN PLACE FOR YOUR OWN SAFETY! IF YOU DO NOT FOLLOW THEM, HOW AM I TO KEEP YOU FROM HURTING YOURSELF?” He cradled his skull in exasperation. “BUT YOU NEVER LISTEN. WELL, YOU KNOW THE RULES, SANS.” Angry eyelights looked down on him as he stretched his hand out.

Sans hesitated. This wasn’t too bad. He could probably deal with it for a while if he had to. Slowly, he brought his hand to the wrist of his control arm and with a small sigh, pulled the carpals away from his body. It was a disconcerting feeling, removing a limb. He could still feel it as though it was attached, but he could no longer control it. It became mannequin-like. He gently rested the hand in his brothers palm, feeling the others phalanges wrap around it tightly.

“NO MAGIC INSIDE, SANS. YOU CAN HAVE THIS BACK WHEN I FEEL YOU’VE LEARNED YOUR LESSON.” Sans nodded, properly chastened. Papyrus sighed again but handed him the plate of spaghetti anyway before heading back to the kitchen to do the dishes. Sans couldn’t believe his luck. It was a tedious process, but he managed to scoop up a few noodles awkwardly with one hand. He was so hungry, he nearly wanted to forgo the fork all together and dive in face first.

Instead, he carefully cut up singular noodles, herding them onto his fork before cautiously bringing the small pile to his mouth, more often than not dropping the majority of the noodles. It was slow, but he could feel small bursts of energy with each bite. He could feel the odd sensation of fabric on his displaced hand and guessed Papyrus had probably just put it in his pocket. He managed to successfully get one more half bite before Papyrus apparently finished in the kitchen. The taller brother glared down at his fumbling.

“IS IT NOT TO YOUR TASTE, BIG BROTHER? THE LEAST YOU COULD DO IS FINISH THE FOOD I LOVINGLY PREPARED FOR YOU AFTER YOUR LITTLE MISHAP EARLIER.” Sans took a quick breath to try to protest, but Papyrus was quick to continue his tirade. “I SUPPOSE IT WAS TOO MUCH TO ASSUME YOU WOULD BE GRATEFUL TO YOUR  _LITTLE_ BROTHER FOR TAKING CARE OF YOU.” He paused for a moment to think.

“I SLAVED AWAY OVER A HOT STOVE FOR YOU TO HAVE THIS DELICIOUS MEAL AND IF YOU WON’T SHOW YOUR APPRECIATION, THEN PERHAPS YOU SHOULD TRY YOUR HAND AT SLAVING OVER A HOT STOVE.” He nyeh’d to himself as he pulled the small hand out from his pocket, showing it to him before going back into the kitchen.

Sans startled to his feet, spaghetti tipping to the floor. He was already in trouble for something, it wouldn’t matter now. He hesitated in the doorway, only hand gripping the frame tightly as he watched Papyrus light the stove. His small frame shook as the flames jumped higher and higher and then it was burning. Sans collapsed to his knees, grip on the door frame the only thing keeping him relatively upright. It burned! It hurt! It hurt so much! He instinctively tried to recoil away from the heat, but the hand lay dumb on the burner, flames licking at the delicate bones as the metal grate heated beneath it. He struggled fruitlessly to dislodge the hand from its position or to stand up or to do anything but scream and sob at the piercing pain that was radiating from where his hand should have been.

Papyrus stood over him, eye lights impassively watching him writhe and moan in pain. No, his own tears were blinding him. He had nearly attacked Papyrus with that hand. He should have tried harder to finish his meal. Papyrus was right to be looking at him with such disappointment. He really was a failure of a brother. His magic wavered and he felt his voice start to fail him, rough groans and squeaks being forced out of him as the phalanges of his hand blackened. He finally let his gaze fall completely, there was no point in watching, maybe it would hurt less if he couldn’t see it.

It was at that moment that Papyrus turned the burner off, metal grate still hot and burning.

“YOU SEE, BROTHER? WORKING OVER A HOT STOVE IS NOT ONLY TAXING, BUT ALSO VERY DANGEROUS! I JUST WISH YOU WOULD APPRECIATE WHAT I DO FOR YOU.” Sans almost couldn’t hear his brother over the rushing sound in his head. He frantically nodded, it was over. Next time he would be better. Wordless sobs spilled from his mouth and Papyrus sighed, aggravation seeping from his very soul.

“I CAN’T BE SURE THAT YOU’VE LEARNED YOUR LESSON YET BROTHER.” Sans tried to crawl forward, handless arm slipping out from under him sending him crashing to the floor. “DON’T PULL THAT PATHETIC ACT ON ME NOW. WERE GOING TO GO TO BED. I WILL KEEP YOUR HAND FOR NOW AND IN THE MORNING,  IF I FEEL YOU’VE LEARNED YOUR LESSON, YOU CAN HAVE IT BACK. THAT SEEMS MORE THAN FAIR, DOESN’T IT?” Sans nodded, tears flowing endlessly as the metal continued to sear the bones on it. His brother was too kind to him. He could have decided to keep the hand all week! Or take the other! It was the least he deserved.

“FOR NOW, WE’LL KEEP THIS HERE.” He gingerly picked up the hand with a pair of tongs, making Sans’s nonexistent nerves fire in pain and pleasure. The cool metal of the tongs a soothing balm to the all encompassing burn that his hand had become. Without aplomb, the oven door was opened and the hand none too gently flung inside. Sans could hardly even jerk against the exhaustion flooding his body. Papyrus fiddled with the dials for a moment, door securely shut before Papyrus hauled Sans up by the good arm, dragging him into his room and depositing him on the floor. He shut the door with a quiet click as he left, leaving the pile of bones shuddering on the floor as the burn in his hand slowly reignited, worsening as the night wore on.

Eventually, his head was filled with nothing but fire and static and darkness.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Yikes!
> 
> Follow me on Tumblr @ faintlyesque to get to-the-minute updates as well as to read this and other fics anywhere from 5 minutes to 5 hours earlier than on AO3! :o


	6. 5

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> He loved him.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> It's my birthday, so I updated both of my stories! 8D
> 
> Enjoy~

Sans shifted on the couch uncomfortably. Papyrus had said he had a surprise for him and to wait for him downstairs. He fidgeted again, sure this was the longest minute of his life. Hearing no sounds from upstairs, he carefully extracted his control hand from his pocket, wincing as the bone scraped across the material.

The black hadn’t come off. His hand looked filthy. Disgusting. Paps had tried to help him, held him down as he squirmed, rough cloth failing to remove the marks. It looked marginally better but felt infinitely worse. The fire in his bones raged on as though it had happened yesterday, not over a full week prior. The palm was the worst, completely blackened after being roasted over the open flame, metal grill marks charred onto the surface. Gently, he tried to flex his fingers. His hand was so stiff and sore, he nearly couldn’t move it at all. As it was, the pain was screaming up and down his arm and he made himself stop. Papyrus wouldn’t like if he was crying when he came back down.

He chanced a peek up the stairs and was startled to find Papyrus leaning over the balcony, watching him. He quickly made his way downstairs and Sans stuffed his hand back into his pocket, ignoring the fire that raced through him again at the movement.

“BROTHER, WHILE YOUR CONDUCT RECENTLY HAS BEEN LESS THAN STELLAR, I GREATLY APPRECIATE THE EFFORT YOU HAVE PUT IN TO IMPROVING YOURSELF. HERE, I MADE THESE FOR YOU.” A simply wrapped package was thrust into his face and he took it carefully, eye lights on his brothers face. Papyrus was unreadable, but his words had sounded…proud? Gingerly, Sans lowered the package and slowly opened it, eventually resorting to using his damaged hand to hold it down while the other set about to untying the twine around it.

Finally, the paper fell open revealing a pair of simple, blue mittens. Sans looked at them in awe before looking back up at his brother.

“…for me?”

“OF COURSE, BROTHER! YOU DESERVE A REWARD FOR YOUR HARD WORK!” His face pulled into a tight grin. “WELL?”

Sans scrambled to put them on, blinking back tears as the rough wool caught slightly on the joints of his hand. They perfectly covered his hands, not a hint of white or black to be seen. They seemed warm, too. Sans was sure he was probably glowing with pleasure as he looked back up at his brother.

“they’re amazing, bro! you made these?” He joked, feeling his face steadily glowing blue. Papyrus looked cross for a moment.

“ARE YOU DOUBTING ME? I’LL HAVE YOU KNOW I-“

“no way, bro! i’d never doubt you! they just look so professional! you really are the coolest, bro!” He felt the glow fade from his cheeks as he admired the craftsmanship. He really was the coolest guy ever, it was a small miracle he even stuck around with him.

“i love them, thanks so much, bro.” He smiled up at his little brother, earning a small nyeh before Papyrus collected himself once more.

“GOOD. WHEN YOU ARE FINISHED ADMIRING THEM, THERE IS SOME BREAKFAST IN THE KITCHEN. AS SOON AS YOU FINISH, GET TO WORK! NO LAZING ABOUT!” With a flourish, he burst out of the house, dashing into the flurry of snow just outside. Sans sat a moment longer, enjoying the feeling of love the mittens gave him.

Ignoring the suffocating warmth on his damaged hand, he smiled and made his way to the kitchen. A bowl of soggy cereal floating in milk sat waiting for him.

He vowed to not make any more mistakes, at least not for the rest of the day. He wanted to remember this feeling forever.


	7. 6

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> He wanted to be good for him.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> To avoid spoilers, don't look at any new tags. xD:

Waterfall was always so quiet and peaceful, the distant roar of the falls down below and the hushed whispers of the echo flowers typically making for a calming backdrop. Today it felt strangely oppressive. Sans stared over the edge into The Abyss, idly kicking his feet into the darkness. Nothing in particular had happened, he’d just wanted some alone time. His brother was off training and Sans had already finished his work for the day, so there was no harm in just sitting alone for a few minutes.

One slipper slid down his foot, teetering on the edge of falling.  _heh, same._  But that wasn’t really true, there was nothing wrong. The slipper settled again when he stopped kicking, that was more like it.  _we’ll both just hang on, okay buddy?_  He grinned emptily at his feet. He was talking to his feet. Thinking at his feet, whatever. Thinking at his slipper. Thinking about it was harder than he thought it should’ve been.

He tightened his grip on the edge of the bridge, sending bolts of pain up his arm. The old wood beneath him was sturdy and unyielding. He wished he could be like that. He wished he could be a strong bridge instead of a dirty old slipper. A nearby echo flower echoed his quiet giggle.  _when i grow up, i wanna be a bridge._ The echoed laugh was much louder the second time.

After his laughter petered out, he hung his head. That had left him  _bone_ -tired. He resisted the urge to just curl up on the bridge. Paps would get worried if he just fell asleep any old place. Instead, he kicked his feet again. The dislodged slipper tumbled from its perch, the pink a rapidly shrinking prick in the darkness below.

“oh, no.” His voice didn’t sound particularly worried. Odd, this was his only pair of slippers. It was gone like that and he didn’t even miss it. The bridge didn’t care, it was just doing its job. He eyed the other slipper, it was just useless now. He was useless, too. If he disappeared, the bridge wouldn’t care, would it? If the bridge disappeared it would be a tragedy. The bridge was all he had, even his slipper had left.

Well, he didn’t want it. He kicked out suddenly, letting the other slipper fall as well. There.

 

…

 

This was ridiculous. He was ridiculous. What was he doing thinking about bridges and slippers and meaningless things? He released the edge, wrapping his arms around his middle instead.

He wasn’t needed. It was probably better if he weren’t there. Papyrus had to overextend himself just to look after him and that wasn’t healthy for either of them. He needed to let Papyrus go, let him live his life unburdened by his useless sack of bones. His shorts bunched up his femurs as he scooted forward.

He could just…scoot a bit more and get out of his hair. Paps would be mad, maybe even sad, but he would bounce back quickly. He was just that type. He could never let anything get him down long. Not like him.

His bones creaked as he squeezed himself. Yeah, this was a good idea. Gingerly, he let his hands clutch the bridge once more.

No, this was wrong. Not like that.

Slowly, he peeled the mittens off, they were a treasured gift and he wouldn’t let them go to waste like he did. He set them in a neat stack and gripped the wood one more time. It hurt, so he held on tighter.

It was dark down below. And quiet. That sounded pretty nice. He wouldn’t be a danger or be in danger down below. He leaned forward so far only his grip on the bridge kept him balanced. It was impossibly dark.

Maybe he would land on his slippers. Wouldn’t that be ironic? All this just to end up with those beat up things again?

He let a breath of air rattle in his ribcage and eased himself forward.

“WHAT IN THE WORLD ARE YOU DOING? SANS!” He froze in place. What in the world  _was_ he doing? He blinked slowly at Papyrus as he stalked forward.

“WHEN NAPSTABLOOK SAID HE SAW YOU COME DOWN HERE, I ASSUMED YOU WERE GOING TO SIT AROUND AND SULK AS USUAL, BUT THIS?” His sockets narrowed at the neatly set aside mittens and his bared hands.

If he’d been quicker, it would be over already. Instead his brothers voice filled his skull.

“BROTHER…YOU WERE GOING TO HURT YOURSELF AGAIN, WEREN’T YOU?” Papyrus was right, of course. There was something wrong with him. He had been so ready to abandon his only family, his precious baby brother. No matter what he did, he sometimes couldn’t stop his thoughts. Magic welled up in his sockets and he nodded. Papyrus looked so disappointed.

“I THOUGHT YOU WERE DONE WITH ALL THIS, BROTHER.” Yeah, he had thought so too. He had thought so every time. He needed his brother after all. He shifted until he was on more stable ground, raising his arms wide to Papyrus. Papyrus sighed.

“STAND UP, YOU ARE NOT A BABYBONES, BROTHER.” He was right, of course. He stood, arms dropping back to his sides. “WHAT HAVE I TOLD YOU ABOUT THESE THOUGHTS OF YOURS?” He dropped his eyelights and the magic began to spill over his sockets.

“they’re wrong. i’m wrong.” His brother nodded in encouragement. “it’s not my fault, but there’s something wrong with me. if i really tried, i could fix it.” Papyrus raised a brow bone at him when he paused to look up. “you love me and only want to help me because i won’t help myself.”

Papyrus seemed pleased at the recitation and scooped him up, finally offering the touch he no longer wanted.

“AND I WILL BE HERE TO HELP YOU EVERY TIME YOU FORGET BECAUSE I LOVE YOU, SANS. I CANNOT HELP YOU IF YOU LEAVE ME.” A woosh of air left Sans’s rib cage. “YOU NEED HELP. SO YOU MUST NEVER LEAVE ME, SANS.” Sans felt his bones rattle as he was shaken roughly, forcing a shaky nod out. “DO YOU HEAR ME? NEVER.”  His nod was more pronounced and Papyrus smiled indulgently, gently pressing a skeleton kiss to his skull.

“GOOD. BUT YOU KNOW WE CAN’T LET THIS LITTLE INDISCRETION GO UNADDRESSED.” Sans curled into his brothers arms. He knew that, but he didn’t have to like it. Papyrus sighed once more before turning and taking them home.

They next day when he woke up, his door was missing and his mittens were sitting in the gaping opening. For an extra long moment he stewed in his guilt. He had acted horribly toward his brother yesterday. Thank goodness Papyrus was such a cool guy. He would have to apologize again now that he had had some time to actually feel bad about what he’d done.

He glanced around and, seeing nothing else left out for him, rolled over and gripped the carpet fibers with his good hand. It only took a minute or two to painstakingly drag himself off the mattress and across the room to the mittens on the floor.

What a cool guy. He knew they had been forgotten with all the hubbub of the day which meant Papyrus had gone back to get them. He felt his soul warm and he pulled them back on.

His brother would come back later and he could apologize sincerely and Paps would fix up his legs and they could put this incident far behind them.

And someday he would be better and finally be able to show his brother just how much he loved him.


	8. 7

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Today was a great day.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This one is almost the same as the one in January Without Snow, chapter 14 but, again, a bit extended~ It doesn’t change or even add any new information, so it’s techinically skippable, but it does reference some past events and the like now, so please have a look!
> 
> Also, LSC is updated with chapter 69 (huehuehue) on my Tumblr (I low key hate it but thank you for being so patient with me!) so if you want to read it, check it out [here](https://faintlyesque.tumblr.com/post/176688599829/like-sour-candy-chp-69-here-just-take-it-also) in all it's uhhhh...glory? Someday I'll get it up on AO3...

Sans had once, tentatively, suggested that Papyrus maybe, possibly go see someone, someone like a professional, about his difficulties controlling himself. The resounding smack that had followed had left his skull ringing for hours and a small chip at the edge of his grin. It hadn’t been the first time, but it was the first time Papyrus hadn’t apologized afterwards.

Today was going to be a good day, though. After his failure a few days back, he hadn’t expected to be able to leave the house for a good while. Stars knew last time he hadn’t been able to go out for at least five days. Possibly longer, time sort of lost its meaning for a bit there. But last night, his little brother had swept into the room, arms clattering against the bones in his grip. Sans had been appropriately repentant, he had said, and The Great Papyrus had taken that into account. Sans wouldn’t disappoint him again. He’d be perfect.

Sans had been up and dressed and downstairs before his brother had to come drag him out of bed. He wouldn’t dare after how hard he’d been working the past few days. Sans had schooled his features and Papyrus was pleased with his response to the spaghetti he always made for him. Almost always made for him. He declared his plans for the day, to patrol the forest and recalibrate his puzzles. Today was a great day.

Sans sat at his station, keeping himself as alert as possible, occasionally patrolling the immediate vicinity to help keep himself awake. His brother would be proud of the effort he was putting in. That he would continue to put in. He took only one, quick break at Grillby’s, despite his brothers disapproval, getting some fries to slather in ketchup before going back to work. The small bit of magic helped soothe the lingering stiffness in his bones, though being back in the cold filled him with a different stiffness. It was boring, tedious, and unnecessary, but it made his brother happy.

When he came home, Papyrus was already in the kitchen, the sound of dishes being washed flittering into the living room. Sans froze.

That was wrong. Dishes never came before cooking. Never. Except… Something must have happened. He sat on the couch, previous elation gone, replaced by a cold knot of anxiety. The sounds eventually shifted to cooking noises, the rhythmic chopping of vegetables had his magic churning in on itself. He had just made a fresh batch this morning, he never made spaghetti twice in one day.

The chop, chop, chop of the knife rang through his skull. Was it too much to hope that Papyrus just wanted to make more spaghetti today? That he had just wanted the dishes clean sooner? Even though the act of making more food would only cause the dishes to get dirty once again. The smell of burnt meat seared his senses, magic welling behind his eye sockets. It could still be okay, he reminded himself. The harsh scraping of the spoon against the pan had his breath picking up.

Later, as he sat at the edge of his mattress, arms curled protectively around his legs, he chastised himself. The bone was only cracked a bit, what really hurt was the area the piping hot sauce had landed on. He had cleaned the sauce off himself and the kitchen floor as best he could, but the burn remained.

Maybe he could do without fries after all.


	9. 8

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> His brother was most important.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Whaaaaat??? Is this story progression I see? This was not planned…This was originally a bit of a vent fic, so it was pretty aimless. But, alas! Here we are! Not to say it will stay strictly linear…

A human.

A human had fallen into the Underground. 

And it was his job as a future Royal Guardsman to capture it! Stars knew he couldn’t rely on anyone else to do a halfway decent job! At least the human seemed to be a good one! They had carefully considered his puzzles (and even had been slightly stumped by Sans’s! Maybe it wasn’t so bad after all!), played nicely with every monster they had met and had even suffered through Sans’s puns properly, with thinly veiled disgust!

If he could capture this human, not only would they be able to get to the surface, but he would finally ascend to the well-deserved position of Royal Guard and be the most beloved figure in the monster community! He would drive a sleek, red sports car and feel the sun on his bones and the wind in his hair!

He “nyeh’d” to himself quietly. And maybe Sans would finally be happier up in the sunshine. Over time, the doom and gloom of the caves had sapped away everything good he could remember about his brother and left him with this empty shell (skeleton?) that acted irrationally and cared little for the thoughts of others.

All he wanted was for his big brother to be a happy, well-adjusted, good monster! But Sans always fought him, every step of the way! Like he didn’t want to be a better monster! He had even found him sitting over The Abyss the other day! He had tossed his slippers down! The gall!

If he was going to treat such important belongings with such disregard, surely he needed to learn to appreciate the value of what he had, Papyrus had thought. He couldn’t go outside without shoes of some sort any more than he could go outside sans legs! (Sans had clearly wanted to laugh at the well-placed pun, but had visibly restrained himself.) Sans had agreed with him, had admitted that he didn’t care to walk about anyways and that they were no great loss.

Like any good brother, he had lectured him on the importance of exercise and his sentry duty as he took them, ensuring their eventual return.

And he had been right!

Papyrus paced slightly as he waited for the human to make their way to his position at the border of Snowdin and Waterfall. Sans had ended up leading the human right to him! A fair amount of work for such a lazybones, but he had done it happily.

Of course he had thanked him for such an act, going so far as to pay for a disgustingly greasy hamburger from that firetrap of a bar he liked so much. It was unfortunate the only safe food they served was a milkshake, delicious as it was. But in that moment, he had seen the glimmer of happiness in Sans’s gaze. Papyrus vowed to work twice as hard to bring back the sweet, though occasionally selfish, big brother he remembered from his childhood. And that meant getting to the surface as soon as possible!

Luckily the human was good. When Sans had first revealed the human, he had, admittedly, been just a slight bit worried. What if the human had attacked? The Great Papyrus didn’t believe that humans were the vicious creatures they had been taught, but even he couldn’t chase away the fear of potentially seeing his only older brother get ripped into little smiling shreds.

But this human was definitely good.

He looked up at the sound of freshly fallen snow crunching.

The human had finally arrived.

“HUMAN. ALLOW ME TO TELL YOU ABOUT SOME COMPLEX FEELINGS…”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Oh noooooo


	10. 9

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> He lost his mind.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> *writes a thing*  
> *doesn't post the thing*  
> :/

Crazy.

It was crazy.

No, he was crazy.

There was no other explanation.

After all this time, he had finally cracked for good.

Three days ago, he had been awoken by his brothers call to come downstairs for breakfast. He had excitedly shouted that, with this new recipe, he was incorporating bacon, a real-life breakfast food! He had sounded so proud. The day had gone downhill from there and had ended with him curled up on his baby brother’s lap, Papyrus’s hand smoothing circles over his shoulder blade as he struggled to compose himself. The dogs had mentioned to his brother that he had slipped off to Grillby’s for a little pick me up. Paps had been rightfully displeased. He remembered parroting back the words of his mantra, but couldn’t quite recall the feeling of saying them. After that, darkness.

 

Two days ago, he had woken up to his brother shouting excitedly about incorporating bacon into their breakfast spaghetti and Sans got himself banned from breakfast for reminding him that he had done that yesterday. It smelled the same, but he wasn’t allowed to try it this time.

He wondered how Papyrus had forgotten.

The day had gone downhill from there and had ended with him curled on the floor of the bathroom, arms around his heaving ribs as he struggled to compose himself. He had slipped off to Grillby’s for just a moment, sure that some sustenance would clear his head, but the dogs let it slip to his brother. Papyrus had said he wasn’t mad, that going without a meal was incredibly difficult for some people. He encouraged him to continue a bit longer. His stomach had ached pitifully as they prepared for bed. Papyrus had reminded him of his brotherly duties of reading a bedtime story and they went through the repetition of his mantra before settling in with Fluffy Bunny. He must have fallen asleep at some point.

 

He had definitely lost it.

Yesterday, his brother woke him with cries of excitement. Today he would be making breakfast spaghetti with bacon! A real breakfast food! Sans took too long to get up, recalling how the bacon had been poorly cooked but not the worst addition. Papyrus had had to come get him from his room. The day had gone downhill from there. He decided against going to Grillby’s, Paps was already a bit upset with him. He wrung his hands when the dogs strolled by his station. He told them he was watching his weight. They had laughed in exasperation.

He must have been dreaming. This was different, this was real.

He must have fallen asleep sitting there. Papyrus was very upset with him. The day ended with him in Papyrus’s lap, a large hand smoothing circles over his shoulder blade as he struggled to compose himself. His brother was cool enough to let him calm down before his inevitable punishment. He couldn’t recall what exactly the punishment had been. He must have fallen back to sleep.

 

He was definitely losing his mind.

He could hear his brother calling him from the bottom of the stairs. He sounded so excited to be testing out a new recipe. Sans clutched his skull in his hands. Papyrus was going to try using bacon in their spaghetti today. Sans pushed back the lump rising in his throat, confused tears stinging his sockets.

Today’s breakfast was going to be the most breakfast-like breakfast spaghetti known to monsterkind.


	11. 10

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Today, he remembered.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Everything seems to be taking me forever lmao. So, uh, have some sads.
> 
> Same as JWS chp. 22, but slightly more. :D
> 
> (Honestly, I think at this point I work on this more than LSC. xD)

After their parents had dusted during the last big plague, it had been left up to Sans to raise his little brother. And little he truly was, tiny and impressionable, his small sockets still managing to take up the majority of his skull. So really, he had no one to blame for Papyrus’s upbringing but himself. Even though he hadn’t been that much bigger himself, still in stripes himself, hardly able to care for just himself. Not that their parents had been saints, but they would’ve been much better for Papyrus than he had. He could only faintly remember them now, mere shadows of words and hands, but he still remembered living on the streets with Papyrus. It had been a miserable existence, full of long, hungry days and cold, sleepless nights. Things had improved since. Somewhat.

  
The Papyrus of back then was a fussy child, demanding nothing but the best from his brother. And Sans could never deny him, his brother was the coolest, his mere existence had brought him back from the brink time and again. No matter how many times he lost sight of himself, his brother was there to help him, to reorient him, to force him out of his head and back to the present. But things had been different back then. He had been different back then.

  
_“BUT SANS, I THOUGHT YOU LOVED ME!” Papyrus cried, orange beads of tears hovering at the corners of his sockets. Sans thought he could even see his mouth tremble, something that shouldn’t be possible for a skeleton. He held his gaze for a moment and then looked down at the half a crabapple he still held. He had managed to find (steal) three of them, the first two and half of the last immediately going to his little brother. He was a growing baby bones, he needed it more. The last half was meant to keep Sans going for another day._  
  
_“bro, you know i love you! but…i’m hungry too! you already ate a lot…” Papyrus’s pouty face shifted to something tinged with anger. His baby brother still managed to surprise him despite all their time together living on the streets._  
  
_“SO I’M JUST A BURDEN TO YOU? I GUESS IT WOULD BE BETTER FOR YOU IF I LEFT!” Papyrus shifted, small legs curling under himself as he prepared to rise. Sans panicked. He couldn’t let that happen! His little bro was all he had left! He had promised himself he would protect him forever! He loved him more than anything else in the world! Even more than seeing the surface! His stomach twisted in pain, demanding the energy he still had clutched in his hand. Papyrus had eaten all the food yesterday, too. Sans wouldn’t be able to go on much longer, but he had to prove to his brother that he loved him._  
  
_“no, bro, never! here,” He held out the other half of the crabapple, watching enviously as the smaller gulped it down without thought, patting his stomach region with a contented sigh, “you know i love you, right bro?” His voice cracked a bit toward the end and Sans scolded himself for being so worried about the answer._  
  
_“I GUESS…BUT YOU SHOULD BE LESS SELFISH NEXT TIME! YOU CAN’T ONLY THINK ABOUT YOURSELF ALL THE TIME!” Sans hung his head. Papyrus was right, after all. He would be fine, he should’ve been thinking more about his brother. He really had been being selfish, hadn’t he? Papyrus seemed to take pity on him, crawling across the small enclosure to wrap him up in a warm hug, his fluffy jacket and big scarf warming him far more than his own ratty old t-shirt ever could. Papyrus loved him, he willingly shared his warmth with him, Sans just needed to be a better brother._


	12. 11

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> He tried and was rewarded.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Did I really not update in October???  
> Sorry .-.

That repeating day had been just a hallucination, he finally decided four days after. A hallucination or a series of false awakenings, was all it had been. He had woken up the next day to his brother asking if he should try bacon again (practice makes perfect, after all!) or try using sausage this time (let no one say Papyrus was stagnating!). Sans had only blinked owlishly at him until he decided Sans had fallen back to sleep with his sockets open and carried him downstairs.

He hadn’t experienced any more repeating since. It felt like none of it had happened and it felt like all of it had happened and more. His memories of the time were scattered, patchy at best. Unreliable. Further proof it had just been a psychotic break of some sort. He tried to be on his best behavior anyway, just in case. Not that he had ever done anything bad on purpose. Mostly.

Snowflakes drifted lazily to the cave floor as Sans leaned onto the counter of his station. He hadn’t been to Grillby’s in days and, loathe though he was to risk his brother finding out, he needed to make an appearance. But whatever that weird series of dreams were or whatever they had been, had somewhat poisoned the idea. He had gotten to see time and again what kind of outcome could occur and more often than not, it ended poorly.

He rested his skull heavily in one hand, gaze drifting to the snow-laden trees. Some days it all felt so pointless. Days like today. Sitting and staring at trees all day? No wonder he was such a disappointment. He couldn’t even get a real job. Everyone knew no humans would fall. It had been ages since the last one and even longer since the one before. Even if one did appear, his job was only to report it, not to engage with it.

His vision stuttered for a moment. He blinked harshly, trying to force his eyes to reset when he thought he saw the snow falling up. Or maybe not falling at all? No, it was definitely moving. But not falling? He rubbed at his eye sockets and the snow fell as normal.

He must have been more tired than he thought. He quickly checked his magical reserves. They were quite low, as was usual. He might have to go to Grillby’s whether he really wanted to or not. He groped about in his hoodie pocket hoping to stumble upon a forgotten packet of ketchup, but came up empty. Seemed like the decision was made for him.

He stood up, letting his spine crack as the air bubbles that had settled between the vertebrae resurfaced. The stretch did well to invigorate him some, his grin perking up somewhat. He would pop in, make a joke or two, grab some ketchup and get out of there. In and out. Easy peasy. He’d had some spaghetti that morning, so his soul wasn’t as desperate for food as previous days. Having a little stash would be beneficial, though.

He stood up, letting his spine crack as the air bubbles that had settled between the vertebrae resurfaced. He would just drop in, make a few jokes, get some ketchup and then…Papyrus didn’t like him drinking ketchup, per say, but it didn’t really bother him. Another quick check on his magic levels told him walking would be safer, so he tossed his hood up and made his way around the counter.

He stood up, letting his spine crack. He looked down at the counter in front of him. He must have drifted off. It was getting too risky for him to  _not_ replenish his magic. If he had really dozed off, it could have ended really poorly. He tossed up his hood and headed around the counter, flipping up a small sign reading “Be Right Back” as he passed. At that moment, a chunk of snow decided to slide off the roof, landing awkwardly on top of his hood and quickly soaking through the fur trim. The fur stuck oddly to his neck. It was unpleasantly cold.

He stood up, spine cracking as he finally moved from his position. Gingerly, he felt at his neck, noting the cool, dry bone under his phalanges. Hadn’t it been wet a second ago? He must have been more tired than he thought. He sighed and searched his pockets once more for another packet of ketchup, but they were empty, as expected. A chunk of snow slid off the roof, prompting him to put up his hood before he started walking. It was bad enough when the trim got wet, forget if that huge chunk slid into his coat.

He stood up, immediately toppling forward as his foot lifted out from under him and he crashed into the counter. He must have fallen asleep. Maybe he’d had a nightmare? He couldn’t remember, in any case, but he was glad he had awoken before Papyrus had seen him. He pulled himself off the counter where he had landed sprawled across the surface. A chunk of snow fell off the roof from the movement. He stared at the fallen snow pile. It  _had_ been a dream, hadn’t it? He stared at the snow pile as though it had the answer to his question.

He stood up, spine cracking as trapped air bubbles were jostled from their resting place.

No.

He sat back down, trembling hands grasping at air.

No, no, no. It was happening again. He pulled in a panicked breath, staring through the snowflakes that jittered about in front of him. They danced in front of him for dayshoursminutesseconds. For an extra long moment(s), he jittered with them.

He stood up, ignoring the falling snow in favor of walking to Grillby’s as quickly as he could. Someone else had to be noticing this. He needed to tell someone.

He stood up, spine cracking as he bit back a sob. He dashed away, down the snowy path to town. He passed another empty sentry station, rounded a corner and slid a bit on the ice. Pain lanced through his skull as he landed.

He stood up, spine cracking as trapped air bubbles finally popped. He pulled together the scraps of his magic and pushed to teleport, appearing in the middle of Grillby’s in an instant. The bustling bar quieter for a moment before a roar of greetings welcomed him. He ambled to the counter, numbly ignoring everyone.

“…?” Grillby asked him.

“heh. yeah. jus’  _bone_ -cold. think i c’n get some of your best?” He tried his best to smile charmingly.

He stood up, spine creaking when the motion was aborted and he sat back down heavily. He gazed out at the snowy landscape, noting the snowflakes dancing as though suspended in the air. He watched them for a long time.

—

Papyrus stomped through the snow to his brothers sentry station. Honestly, snow was so much easier to walk on when you stomped on it. He never understood why people tried to walk delicately on it. He wondered if his stomping would wake his brother up from where he was, undoubtedly, having a nap.

The station appeared in his line of sight, a small blip of brown near the edge of the forest. Sans was there, which was good. He hadn’t run off to that disgusting bar. And! Sans was awake! He jogged the last leg of his journey.

His brother looked…exhausted. And had faint smudging under his sockets. He smiled at his small brother.

“SANS! WERE YOU AWAKE THIS WHOLE TIME?” Sans bobbed his skull in response. “THAT’S WONDERFUL, BROTHER! I KNEW YOU COULD DO IT! YOU SHOULD HAVE A GOOD REST! I WILL MAKE MY WONDERFUL SPAGHETTI! COME! LET’S GO HOME!” He would let his brother rest a bit before dinner. Such a wonderful event warranted a bit of a reward.

Sans stood up, spine cracking as trapped air bubbles finally escaped from between his vertebrae. His shoulder hunched in, a stray tear cutting a new path across the blue smudges on his cheek. Papyrus hummed in thought.

“HMM, JUST THIS ONE TIME, BROTHER, BECAUSE YOU DID AN EXCELLENT JOB!” He rounded the counter and crouched, encouraging Sans to climb into his back.

He stood up, Sans settling in against his back, small hands looped gently over his shoulders, clutching at his scarf. He felt him nuzzle his skull against his battle body.

“YES, YES, YOU CAN NAP ALONG THE WAY, LAZYBONES.”


	13. 12

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> He just wanted to help.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> :O A new challenger appears!

“Oh, no~! You found me~!” A wink, “What am I gonna do now~?” The tiny flower bobbed its head in worry as Sans stared it down.

“jus’- just leave him alone, alright?” Sans grit his teeth. The stupid little weed had been hanging around the area Papyrus worked on his puzzles in, flipping switches and activating pressure plates. Papyrus had gotten excited at the prospect of capturing a human and had been rightfully upset when it had turned out to just be a flower. Sure, they had talked it out and even kind of became friends, but Papyrus had still been a bit sore from the extra recalibration he’d had to do. “if all you’re gonna do is mess with him, then get out of here!” It was as close to a shout as he ever got.

“He he, what’re you gonna do if I don’t, pal?” The silly face shifted to something more sinister, its tiny tongue still poking out, “Let him beat you up for me?”

Sans froze, sockets dark.

“You’re really not so good at keeping secrets, are ya?” The flower laughed. “Maybe that’s something else he should work on with you.”

“wha- you- i- you don’t know what you’re talking about, bud.”

“He he. You should be surprised at how simple you are. Really, all it takes is a little sympathy.” The flower’s face suddenly rearranged, his own wide grin and deep sockets staring up at him, “i don’t wanna be bad, i wanna be good for him, be worth his time, his love, but i- i just can’t control it sometimes!” His own voice cried up at him, “some days i just can’t do anything… and i think maybe it would be better if i was gone. maybe i should jus-“

“stop! stop it! what do you want? how do you… why…” He trailed off, shame and embarrassment flooding him.

“BROTHER?” Sans jerked around like he’d been hit. “BROTHER, WHAT’S- FLOWERY?”

“It’s Flowey.”

“YES, FLOWERY. WHAT ARE YOU DOING HERE?” Sans felt a cold stone drop into his stomach when Flowey turned, his face shifting to the teary-eyed visage of the recently bullied.

“Papyrus? This is your brother?” Papyrus nodded stiffly. “I know you said your brother had some trouble… interacting with other people, but he just came up to me and started demanding that I stop being friends with you!” He cried, fat, crocodile tears spilling over the disc that made up his face. Papyrus’s face scrunched up in a way bone probably shouldn’t.

“IS THIS TRUE, SANS?”

“n-no! Paps, bro! that’s- that’s not what-“

“It’s okay, Papyrus. I should have been more careful when I spoke to him, maybe he’s just in a bad mood, aren’t you, Sans?” The flower turned to look at him, expression that of perfect innocence.

“no! no, bro, ya gotta believe me! i didn’t- he was just messing with you. he’s… he’s not sorry!”

“SANS,” His eyes hardened as he sighed, “I UNDERSTAND THAT YOUR EMOTIONS ARE… COMPLEX. BUT YOU CANNOT CHASE AWAY MY FRIENDS BECAUSE YOU ARE JEALOUS. I KNOW YOU’RE NOT TRYING TO BE A BAD MONSTER, BUT THIS IS NOT SOMETHING A GOOD MONSTER DOES.” Sans’s soul gave an odd jerk, bringing tears to his sockets. He didn’t believe him. He wouldn’t even listen to him.

“FLOWERY,” He turned, “I DEEPLY APOLOGIZE FOR MY BROTHER. IT SEEMS THAT HE HAS CHOSEN TO THROW A CHILDISH FIT IN HIS JEALOUSY. HOW EMBARRASSING.” He grimaced as he regarded Sans once more, “WE WILL SPEAK AT HOME TONIGHT, SANS, FOR NOW, YOU MUST DO THE RIGHT THING AND SAY YOU’RE SORRY.” Sans blanched.

“b-bro, i-”

“Oh, gosh, I don’t want you to get so upset over little ol’ me! I hope next time we meet, we can become the bestest of friends~!” Sans stared tiredly at the flower. Papyrus seemed somewhat satisfied.

“YES, I HOPE SO, TOO. COME, BROTHER.” Papyrus’s hand wrapped tightly around the hood of his jacket, pulling him in close as he walked away. “GOODBYE, FLOWERY.”

“It’s Flowey!” The flower chirped even as his face changed to mirror Sans’s own once more. The mirror image had comical x’s where the eye sockets should be and the smile was twisted into a frown. “Talk to you later, Papyrus!”


	14. 13

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> He marveled.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> These next few parts might be fairly short. I just kind of write scenes and then slap 'em up. :>
> 
> Thank you for reading~! <3

The human had done it! They had broken the barrier. Somehow the little human had worked their way into everyone’s souls. And they were free.

The small group loitered around in the chamber before the barrier, gathering their wits. The tiny human seemed shaky after waking up so, really, what did a few more minutes hurt compared with how long they had been trapped. They all had been rather shaky, come to think of it, though he couldn’t for the life of him remember why. He probably should have been more concerned about that, but it really paled in comparison to other things that may or may not have happened that he may or may not remember.

Well, the important thing was that they were getting out of here. The small human was weak in body, but their determination was strong. Their struggle through The Underground had been long and difficult, he assumed, if the flashes of blood and battle he thought he remembered were to be believed. No one had dusted, which was a nice bonus. They had even gone on a date with Papyrus, not even his cool brother could resist their charms.

Sans hung off to the side with his brother, listening to the boisterous skeleton chat with the Captain of the Royal Guard as he traded puns with his mysterious pun-pal.. Once the kid woke up, they silently chatted with everyone and then finally, as one, they approached the light at the end of the tunnel. The small group of monsters were hesitant before stepping into the light, the humans questioning gaze prompting them to finally let the warm glow encase them.

Step by step, the world glowed around them until before them, a wide blue and brown landscape appeared. It was warm, but there was a cool wind with a crisp bite to it that passed through them. Sans could hardly convince his feet to take him farther out, eye lights glued to the scenery. Everyone else seemed to feel much the same way, all of them also stopping part way out.

Someone was talking, but Sans had trouble staying in the conversation. He had never seen something so big, so endless. Sure he had read books that talked about the never ending sky and the sun and space and stars, but he had never dreamed he would stand below it. Never dreamed he would be surrounded by so much endlessness. None of them had. As far as he knew, almost every monster in The Underground had been born there, only knowing the claustrophobia of those stone walls. A few had vague memories of the surface. Many believed them to be rambling about the impossible.

But that was all over. The great blue sky stretched wide over them now. Far over his shoulder, the blue was tinged with oranges and purples. A fabled sunrise. Or maybe a sunset? He looked up at his brother, who was already looking down at him. He could feel the awe on his face. Papyrus looked so pleased, brow softened in the warm light. Sans cleared his throat, pushing down the ball of tears waiting to slip out.

Papyrus set a gentle hand on his skull and smiled at him. Things would be better now. The surface would do them a world of good. Would do all monsters a world of good.

“bro-“ Sans’s voice cracked, his vision blurring over. The others seemed to not notice their touching moment, perhaps to caught up in their own moments. Sans felt oddly indignant that no one was noticing his brother being so cool.

“SANS! SANS, ARE YOU AWAKE YET?” His vision cleared up, the darkness of his room echoing the yells. Sans’s body shuddered, a sudden sob ripping through him. Weird. Must’ve been a doozy of a dream.

“SANS?” Oh, right. He called back to his brother, shuffling himself out of bed and into a probably somewhat clean pair of shorts and a dingy, grey shirt. Breakfast was a simple affair, spaghetti with a slightly-too-peppered tomato sauce. Nothing he’d complain about. Could’ve been a bit warmer. Not something he’d ever thought he’d wish for after the incident with the stove. But, he’d been feeling oddly cold since he woke up. Normally it just went right through him. He was more grateful than ever that he had his fluffy jacket to keep him warm.

He gently ran his phalanges along the cloth wrapped around the blackened bone of his control hand before stuffing it into his pocket. Even days later it still hurt so much. With his luck, it would probably never feel any better. At his brothers prompting, he shuffled outside. At least the snow felt nice on the burn.


	15. 14

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> He just needed another moment.

Artificial daylight had been a true feat of magic when it had first been standardized across the Underground. Today, the light seeped through the cracks between Sans’s fingers making him groan. He shifted in their makeshift nest for a moment, tugging a dirtied cloth over his face.

It was slightly more effective than his fingers.

He sniffled miserably.

He didn’t hear Papyrus in their shelter, hopefully he was still asleep. He just needed another minute.

He massaged at his eye socket, willing the pain to fade.

The air beneath the cloth over his face grew warm and stuffy, making it hard to breathe. If he moved it, the light would be back, but if he left it, he’d suffocate. He huffed in displeasure and peeled the cloth back, just long enough to grab a few gulps of air before diving back under. After a long, quiet, warm moment, he steeled himself.

The world swam around him as he sat up. Remnants of his last meal crept up along his spine. He swallowed them down and blinked owlishly into the brightly lit room. The light invaded his skull in a wave of scraping, scratching at the sensitive bone around his eye socket. Cringing, he smashed a hand to the tender area, small bursts of relief as the secondary pain was registered. He sniffled again. Tears were already welling in the corners of his sockets. The pain felt deep in his bones.

Nausea welled up inside him again. Should he try moving or not? Papyrus would be upset if he dirtied their sleeping area. But could he make it anywhere else?

The feeling slowly ebbed away, thankfully. He slowly brought his legs up, letting his eye socket rest on his patella. The press of bone on bone hurt in a different, less invasive way, so he stayed there, gently grinding his socket against his knee. In the dark and quiet he could almost tolerate it. He grit his teeth, just another moment to pull himself together.

The pain throbbed anew, pulling his hands to scrub over the increasingly sensitive surface of the bone. He pulled in a deep breath, imagining the pain escaping slowly as he released it.

“BROTHER?” Sans nearly cried out, the sound sending a shockwave of light and pain through his skull.

“uh. yeah?” His own voice sounded okay, though it resonated uncomfortably over the bridge of his nasal bone.

“IT’S ALREADY AFTERNOON, YOU SAID YOU’D TEACH ME MORE MAGIC TODAY!” He could imagine Papyrus’s little foot tapping to the rhythm of the drumming in his head.

“uh, yeah. sorry. don’t think i can do it today, sorry bro.” He cradled his skull in his hand, letting it tilt toward where his little brother was standing, upset.

“BUT YOU PROMISED! WHY NOT?” He tried not to, he really did, but the burst of light and pain the sharp words cause made him pull away. He curled in on himself, eyes firmly shut.

“got a bit of a headache…sorry…” He rubbed again at the sore bone, chills running through his body as the gentle touch conflicted with the ache.

“JUST A HEADACHE?” His voice had moved closer. Sans panted raggedly, trying to push the pain and the voice away. He must have made a sound in the affirmative, because he felt Papyrus shuffle next to him on his knees.

“sorry…” A small hand settled at the base of his occipital bone.

“I SUPPOSE IT CAN’T BE HELPED. IT IS NOT YOUR FAULT YOU WERE BORN SO MUCH WEAKER THAN I!” He let his fingers gently scrape at the smooth bone beneath them and quieted slightly. “I WILL HELP YOU, DON’T WORRY! THE SOONER THIS IS FINISHED, THE SOONER YOU CAN TEACH ME MAGIC!” Sans nodded slowly, letting the pain roll with the motion.

“sorry…” He quietly offered.

“IT’S FINE. LET’S JUST HURRY UP!” The hand left his neck and he was slowly guided back to lay down, head resting on Papyrus’s cloth covered lap. The movement hurt, pulsing through his skull, but Papyrus’s hands didn’t allow him to shift around. After a moment of hesitation, another cloth was arranged to cover his eyes, thankfully leaving his mouth and nose free. He inhaled deeply. Papyrus was disappointed, of course he was, but he was such a cool guy, sitting with him like this. Softly, a hand smoothed over his skull, a wide circle at his brow followed by a quick sweep back to his neck and back. His sockets throbbed in time with the petting, the cloth soaking up the stray tears that escaped.

 

 

When he woke up, it was dark and Papyrus was curled up next to him.


	16. 15

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> He had to find his brother.

“paps? paps?” Sans called out into the snow, “paps, where are ya?” It had already been too long, Papyrus was never late. Never ever. “bro?”

A human was in the Underground. They had slipped out of The Ruins a bit after Sans had started his sentry shift. The first real live human he’d ever seen. Probably. Most likely. Maybe. He’d shaken their hand and they had laughed at the whoopie cushion and Sans had decided to honor his promise to the mystery woman behind the door.

His brother had been so excited to have a real live human challenge his puzzles. The human had even managed to charm the other residents of Snowdin, guaranteeing their safety a little bit longer.

“bro?” His voice was muffled in the wind, carrying slightly less each time he called out. The border between Snowdin and Waterfall never failed to chill him to the bone, both with the temperature and the lack of visibility. Magic flooded his sockets as he strained to see through the flurry, small, shuffling steps carrying him deeper into the thick.

A soft touch at his exposed ankle made him stop. His slipper had been slightly buried in the snow and the tiniest patch of red peeked out at him. He gingerly picked his foot out of the snow to find something long and red trailing off of him. Sans felt something in his rib cage clench, not even noticing the slight lull in the swirling storm.

Papyrus would be upset that he had lost his scarf: he never went anywhere without it, wearing it to bed, in the shower, when sparring, everywhere. He picked it up with care, gently folding the item over his arm. The wind almost completely died out.

“bro, i got your scarf!” He called out, “c’mon, bro, let’s wrap this up! my nose is gonna fall off!” He waited for the indignant response, but nothing came. The pinching feeling came back as he pulled his phone out of his pocket. No missed calls or messages received, but three unanswered calls sent. And one punny message. Papyrus never didn’t answer his phone.

He pressed the send button once more. After a long moment of silence, a friendly beep confirmed that the phone was on and in service and ringing. A faint, tinny tune started playing nearby.

“bro?” The sound didn’t move closer or farther. He hung up his phone. The music stopped. With a gulp of dread, he sent the call once more. Music began to play again. Phone in one hand, he crouched, the sound a bit louder. “did you lose your phone, too?”

He dragged his fingers through the top layer of snow, almost immediately colliding with something cold and hard. Papyrus’s phone. It jingled merrily despite its wet, semi-frozen state. A testament to Alphys’s design, it was. A crunch before him made him startle.

The human was looking at him.

“…waddaya mean, kid?”

“uh, okay, listen, do you know where Paps is? i gotta give him back his stuff.” He shifted the items in his hands.

“…gone? i don-“ The human seemed aggravated.

“what, no! kid, ya got it all wrong, he-“

“what do you mean better this way? where’s papyrus?” The human’s eyes drifted to the side.

“let me try again, where’s my brother?”

He looked down at his feet and then back to the scarf in his arms. Fluffy white snow flakes mixed with fine, grey dust covering the surface.

“kid?” His voice trembled slightly.

“where’s Papyrus?”


	17. 16

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> He had to know.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Chapter warnings: It's only 200 words. :<

“…?”

“nah, i’m fine. thanks grillbz.” Sans took a long pull from the ketchup bottle, relishing the feel of it in his mouth as it incorporated into his magic. Grillby didn’t move, flames still trained on the skeletons face. Sans grinned up at him.

“what? somethin’ on my face?” Grillby’s flames crackled and he turned, one flaming hand already reaching for an abandoned rag. Now seemed like as good a time as any.

“actually, uh, ya got a minute?”

“…?” Sans felt his smile soften with humor. Of course Grillby wouldn’t turn him away.

“so uh. you, huh. you ever get… dejavu?” Great job, good and concise. “like you uh, ever feel like you did something before but uh, geez. but ya don’t  _remember_ remember doing it?” He clarified to the straight-faced flame.

“…”

“i-i’m not- c’mon Grillbz,” He spluttered, “geez, the one time i try to be serious.” He pulled the ketchup in closer, acutely aware of Grillby’s steely flames trained on him.

“…?”

“nah, nothin’ in particular. jus’ thinkin’.” The bottle crumpled in his grip as he struggled to get the last dregs from the bottom. “actually, nevermind. gotta get going, see ya around.” He jumped off the stool and hurried out the door, focusing on the magic running through his bones and not the warmth of the bar behind him.


End file.
